Pharmacology News and Research

Latest Pharmacology News and Research

Do common treatments for ADHD increase risk of drug abuse?

Parents, doctors, and others have wondered whether common treatments for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) inadvertently predispose adolescents to future drug abuse.

19 Jun 2007

Isradipine may slow Parkinson's

Gloria E. Meredith, Ph.D., collaborated with D. James Surmeier, Ph.D. and other scientists at Northwestern University to study the drug, Isradipine, and its possible effects on Parkinson's disease.

17 Jun 2007

Structure of protein altered in autism revealed

As a result of mapping the structure of the protein complex implicated in autism spectrum disorders, a research team led by scientists at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences has discovered how particular genetic mutations affect this complex and contribute to the developmental abnormalities found in children with autism.

15 Jun 2007

Irrational use of medicines is a major problem all over the world

The World Health Organization (WHO) and many other bodies are concentrating on improving the use of medicines. Problem-based teaching of Pharmacology and Therapeutics to undergraduate medical students has been recognized as a key intervention to improve the use of medicines.

15 Jun 2007

Call for greater research into paediatric drugs for epilepsy

Researchers have called for urgent studies into the long-term safety of newer antiepileptic drugs after discovering that the number given to children has increased significantly over recent years, reports the June issue of British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology.

14 Jun 2007

Mouse hibernation hormones described

A key hormone enables starving mice to alter their metabolism and “hibernate” to conserve energy, revealing a novel molecular target for drugs to treat human obesity and metabolic disorders, UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have found.

8 Jun 2007

Experts call for greater research into paediatric drugs for epilepsy

8 Jun 2007

Predicting treatment responses earlier for brain tumor patients

Using metabolic or molecular imaging to measure brain tumor patients' response to treatment is a powerful predictor of survival, notes a first-of-its-kind study presented at the 54th Annual Meeting of SNM, the world's largest society for molecular imaging and nuclear medicine professionals.

5 Jun 2007

CRT and Manchester University announce biomarker alliance with AstraZeneca

Cancer Research Technology Limited (CRT), the cancer-focused development and commercialisation company, and The University of Manchester today announce the establishment of an alliance with AstraZeneca to develop serological pharmacodynamic (PD) biomarkers.

4 Jun 2007

Researchers identify novel molecular target for Yersinia

Effector proteins are the bad guys that help bacterial pathogens do their job of infecting the host by crippling the body's immune system.

28 May 2007

Tracing the path of depression

David Nutt, Professor of Psychopharmacology, said: "The development of one of these radioactive tracers to enable the study of noradrenaline and its related processes in those suffering depression is critical to our proper understanding of this disease.

27 May 2007

New treatment for toxic shock syndrome

Researchers at the University of Minnesota and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have developed a new therapeutic that neutralizes Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS) more effectively than other treatments.

23 May 2007

Artificially created bone tissue

As the nation ages, an estimated 44 million Americans, including at least half of those ages 50 and older, are at risk for osteoporosis, making their bones fragile and vulnerable to serious fractures.

22 May 2007

Not enough is known about long-term safety of "functional foods"

So-called 'functional foods' need to be systematically monitored because not enough is known about their long-term safety and effectiveness, say a group of scientists writing in the British Medical Journal.

18 May 2007

Innovative drug-delivery system for rotavirus vaccine

A thin strip that dissolves in the mouth like a popular breath-freshener could someday provide life-saving rotavirus vaccine to infants in impoverished areas.

17 May 2007

Smokeless cannabis-vaporizing device may help those with HIV-related neuropathy

A smokeless cannabis-vaporizing device delivers the same level of active therapeutic chemical and produces the same biological effect as smoking cannabis, but without the harmful toxins, according to UCSF researchers.

16 May 2007

Study implicates protein as a trigger of advanced prostate cancer recurrence

Scientists with the Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have for the first time implicated a growth-promoting cellular protein as one trigger of the inevitable recurrence of advanced prostate cancer in men who are undergoing drug treatment to shut down their sex hormones, or androgens.

9 May 2007

Recommended doses of ginseng, ginko biloba do not interfere with drug absorption

Recent findings that the widely-used herbal supplement Saint John's wort could dramatically affect the absorption and metabolism of many prescription and non-prescription drugs raised concerns that other popular herbal supplements might cause similar changes, thus significantly altering drugs, therapeutic or toxic effects.

2 May 2007

Statin drugs also may help reduce risk of heart failure

Statin drugs, known primarily for their ability to lower cholesterol, also may reduce the overactive sympathetic nervous system response that contributes to the worsening of heart failure and increases the risk of sudden cardiac death, two University of Missouri-Columbia researchers have found. Heart failure is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States.

2 May 2007

Biomarker discovery bodes well for better cancer diagnostics

While new findings from Ohio State University scientists suggest a genetic marker that could help distinguish between chronic pancreatitis and pancreatic cancer and gauge who will do well with cancer treatment, a pharmacologist at the Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson in Philadelphia sees the discovery as much more.

2 May 2007